Golf is popular sport and recreational past time. Every year, millions of golfers devote significant time and resources toward improving their golf swings, particularly full swings with woods and irons. While actually playing a round of golf on a golf course is, of course, the most pleasurable method to develop these skills, a round of golf can consume a significant amount of time and money.
In order to practice, most golfers utilize so-called driving ranges, where the golfer can repeatedly practice drive or tee shots from a driving station. Even though the driving range is less time consuming and costs less then playing a round, driving ranges suffer from the limitations of access and availability to many golfers.
Many solutions to this problem have been proposed. One solution has been the development of frame and net structures that can be used at or near the golfer's home. Such nets may include a circular or square frame forming a periphery to which is attached a mesh or net material. Such frames usually comprise a set of interlocking right-angle poles that, when fully assembled, form a rectangular shape across. A vertical screen or net is disposed onto the rectangular shape into which a golf ball may be driven. These frames and nets of the prior art are, however, usually fairly expensive and complex to assemble, particularly when assembled alone. In addition, there are usually an inadequate amount of pockets positioned to accurately track the flight of the hit golf balls. Also, the loss of even a single pole segment renders the entire net useless. Such nets further typically consume significant storage space when not in use.
Other frames comprise self-erecting flexible loops that can be folded upon themselves and are attached about their periphery to a net or mesh. Although easier to deploy, such frames likewise tend to consume significant space and are typically smaller when deployed and hence of lower utility. Thus, golf practice nets that expand to a larger target area are desired.
Other suggestions are disclosed in Yoon U.S. Pat. No. 6,517,444; Yoon U.S. Pat. No. 6,514,149; Kim U.S. Pat. No. 6,210,288; Cho U.S. Pat. No. 6,135,894; Macaluso U.S. Pat. No. 5,989,130; Cho U.S. Pat. No. 5,976,023; Macaluso U.S. Pat. No. 5,569,094; and Kitzhaber U.S. Pat. No. 5,467,990.
A need has existed to track practice swings of golfers by the type of flight of the golf balls. A need has existed for ascertaining whether a golf ball has been hit consisting too high and to the left, or too low and to the left, too high and to the center, too low and to the center, too high and to the right and so on. A need has existed for an assembly designed to track patterns of hitting of golf balls.
The present embodiments are detailed below with reference to the listed Figures.